Type 2 Diabetes is a seriously debilitating disease. Hereís why. Diabetes is the major cause of blindness and kidney disease (which can lead to dialysis) and is responsible for over 65,000 lower limb amputations a year. If thatís not scary enough, diabetes is also deadly.

Diabetes is linked to nearly 300,000 U.S. deaths a year. Itís the seventh leading direct cause of death and a major contributing factor to heart disease - our number one cause of death.

Actually, the overall risk of death for a diabetic is twice that of a non-diabetic.

Whatís even scarier? Type 2 diabetes (adult onset diabetes), which is related to excess weight and sedentary lifestyle, has risen by 20% in the last ten years among U.S. children.

Why? According to the U.S Centers for Disease Control and Prevention three times as many children and teens today are obese compared to a generation ago.

But the good news is that type 2 diabetes is not difficult to prevent and can even be reversed. Plus, itís never too late to start, especially if youíre at an increased risk for the disease.

A High Fiber Diet is natural medicine for type 2 diabetes

Most people know that eating a poor diet of white bread, white rice and white sugar (in all of its many forms and disguises) is unhealthy and can lead to debilitating and deadly diabetes.

However, most donít realize that adding more healthy high fiber foods to your daily diet may be the best natural medicine to both prevent and help keep diabetes under control?

One major six year study, for example, reported in the Journal of the American Medical Association, showed that women who ate a low fiber, high sugar diet had a two and a half times higher risk of getting diabetes than women who ate plenty of fiber.

Other studies have confirmed that diabetics who eat a diet of healthy fiber rich foods like 100% whole grains, fresh fruits and vegetables can reduce their blood sugar levels and possibly also reduce their need for medical intervention, either medication, dialysis or amputation.

A sugary low fiber diet stresses the pancreas by inducing a chronic demand for insulin.

This increased demand over time weakens the pancreas to the point where the pancreas is unable to produce the insulin the body needs when it needs it. This condition of insulin resistance is the most common cause of type 2 diabetes.

Fiber is rough and tough. Getting enough fiber in your daily diet reduces your bodyís need to produce insulin by slowing down the absorption time of carbohydrates.

If youíre eating a typical American diet, you probably need twice as much fiber as youíre getting right now. The average American only eats between 10 to 15 grams of fiber a day.

The recommendation is between 25 to 40 grams of daily fiber, depending on age and gender.

How do you get enough fiber? You can start by eating more whole grains, fruit, vegetables, nuts and seeds. For example, just five servings of either vegetables or fruits along with a couple of servings whole grains or beans supplies a healthy 25 grams of fiber to your daily diet.

For preventing diabetes, the American Diabetes Association recommends losing weight with a program of increased physical activity and a healthy high fiber, low calorie diet.